Comparison of Chemical Constituents of Essential Oils of Black Cumin (Nigella sativa L.)

Essential oils from dried aerial parts of Nigella sativa were analyzed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The air dried plant materials were subjected to hydrodistillation for 4 h using a Clevenger type apparatus to give yellow oils. The major compounds in the essential oil of Turkey sample were alpha-thujene (15.78 %), p-cymene (48.25 %), trans-4-methoxythujane (6.56 %), beta-pinene (4.60 %), alpha-pinene (3.52 %) and limonene (2.88 %) while p-cymene (51.42 %), alpha-thujene (16.36 %), trans-4-methoxythujene (6.11 %), beta-pinene (3.98 %), alpha-pinene (3.60 %) and limonene (2.84 %) were major components of Syria essential oil. The main compound of Ethiopia essential oil was p-cymene (55.03 %) followed by alpha-thujene (18.19 %), trans-4-methoxythujene (6.33 %), beta-pinene (4.50 %), alpha-pinene (3.96 %) and limonene (2.85. %).